Human activities are generally intended to maintain or improve the quality of life for humans, often to the detriment of other forms of life. Marine environments have historically borne the brunt of harmful human activities due to an unfortunate out-of-sight, out-of-mind approach to waste disposal, over-harvesting, and other harmful activities.
For example, it is known that fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides commonly used for agricultural production may have highly detrimental impacts on the ability of marine environments to sustain life. Similarly, residential development along shores may result in undesirable discharges into marine environments from landfills, septic systems, and other ordinary residential activities (e.g. gasoline, oil, pesticides, fertilizers, detergents, human pathogens, medicinal compounds, etc.). Runoff from farmland and urban population centers may carry such substances, as well as other harmful chemical and particulate content, to adjoining marine environments. Such substances are even known to result in oxygen-depleted regions or “dead zones” within downstream marine environments that are unable to sustain many species of marine life. Other human activities, such as shipping and transportation activities, inevitably increase pollutant levels in marine environments due to ordinary discharges (e.g. oil, diesel fuel, and engine exhaust), as well as accidental discharges and spills. Even human recreational activities, such as boating, jet-skiing, boat racing, and cruise ships, may have deleterious effects on water quality, and the health of aquatic life within a marine environment.
Some contemporary societies have developed an improved appreciation for the importance of responsible water management. For example, some governmental authorities have enacted laws intended to limit the deleterious effects of human activities on water quality, while other organizations are taking action to protect, improve, and steward specific aquatic environments, such as the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, the SeaDoc Society, the Puget Sound Partnership, the Flathead Lakers, the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration, the Gulf of Mexico Alliance, and many other similar organizations.
Despite the commendable efforts of these organizations and authorities, human activities continue to threaten the health of marine environments. The ability of marine environments to recover from detrimental human activities continues to diminish, and as human populations increase, aquatic life faces an ever-increasing struggle for survival.